Boise Classic Movieshttp://boiseclassicmovies.com
Screening Boise's favorite movies at the Egyptian TheatreFri, 09 Dec 2016 08:42:44 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.5.4Was Raiders the Best Picture of 1981?http://boiseclassicmovies.com/was-raiders-the-best-picture-of-1981/
Fri, 06 Jun 2014 21:32:49 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=1098772Well, it was nominated. Raiders won Oscars for Best Sound, Best Set/Art Direction, and Best Effects at the 1982 Academy Awards. But it was nominated for Oscar’s top two categories as well, Best Director and Best Picture. Warren Beatty won Best Director for Reds, and Chariots of Fire won Best Picture. Chariots of Fire?! When […]]]>

Well, it was nominated.

Raiders won Oscars for Best Sound, Best Set/Art Direction, and Best Effects at the 1982 Academy Awards. But it was nominated for Oscar’s top two categories as well, Best Director and Best Picture.

Warren Beatty won Best Director for Reds, and Chariots of Fire won Best Picture.

Chariots of Fire?! When was the last time you popped up some corn and threw in Chariots of Fire? I’m guessing never. Not that re-watchability is the measure by which we ought to judge a film, but Chariots of Fire over Raiders? Chariots of Fire?!!!

I have no further argument.

]]>30 Years Ago Todayhttp://boiseclassicmovies.com/30-years-ago-today/
Mon, 24 Mar 2014 16:55:13 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=1094230Regal Cinemas reminded us all that the Breakfast Club met in detention 30 years ago today!

]]>The original Halloween is still the best!http://boiseclassicmovies.com/the-original-halloween-is-still-the-best/
Mon, 28 Oct 2013 17:49:52 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=50030John Carpenters original horror classic, Halloween, is screening tomorrow night at the historically haunted Egyptian Theatre, just in time for All Hallows’ Eve! We’re going to have a great time! We’ll have a costume contest with prizes, and we’ll hand you a free beer for bringing a carved pumpkin with you for us to light […]]]>

John Carpenters original horror classic, Halloween, is screening tomorrow night at the historically haunted Egyptian Theatre, just in time for All Hallows’ Eve! We’re going to have a great time! We’ll have a costume contest with prizes, and we’ll hand you a free beer for bringing a carved pumpkin with you for us to light during the show! You can hand out candy on Thursday, but Tuesday is all about getting creeped out at the theater with a bucket of popcorn!

As of this writing, around 230 of you already have tickets to the show. But if you still need convincing that Halloween is among the best and most significant horror flicks, here’s a convincing write-up from Today.

He came home 35 years ago Friday. “Halloween,” the iconic horror film featuring William Shatner mask-wearing killer Michael Myers, opened on Oct. 25, 1978. Made for $320,000, it grossed $70 million worldwide, and turned horror filmmaking upside-down.

Everett Collection

Many of the horror movie cliches of today were once fresh, in 1978’s “Halloween,” which turns 35 this week.

John Carpenter, the late Debra Hill, and crew took a quiet midwestern setting and a spooky holiday and slathered them with terror. And when “Halloween” succeeded, “Friday the 13th,” “April Fool’s Day,” “Silent Night, Deadly Night,” and a raft of other horror films came rushing in.

“Halloween” strode in the giant footsteps of director Alfred Hitchcock, but so many films since have borrowed from “Halloween” itself. You’ll surely recognize a few of these terror trademarks.

The faceless killer
One of the greatest facts about “Halloween” is the well-known detail that Michael Myers is wearing a William Shatner mask, with the eyes cut larger and painted white. Jason Voorhees and his hockey mask came later, but “Halloween” pioneered the idea that evil hides its face.

The chilling music
John Carpenter didn’t just direct and co-write the film, he composed the infamous tinkly piano music that helps the suspense build and build and build. Carpenter said in AMC’s “Backstory: Halloween,” a documentary about the making of the film, that when he first showed it to a 20th Century Fox executive without the music, she didn’t find it scary at all. With the music added, magic was made.

The innocent victims
“Halloween” helped popularize the idea that beautiful girls who dare to have sex, or smoke pot, or drink, are thereby punished by being murdered. Carpenter fought that description of the film, pointing out that his teens were doing normal teenage things, and they were murdered not for having sex, but because they weren’t paying attention. (“Cabin in the Woods,” a delightful 2012 horror film, turns this tradition on its ear, setting up characters who are killed in a specific order due to their horror-movie stereotype — the virgin being saved for last.)

The blissful setting
Haddonfield, Ill., the movie’s setting, is fictional, but named for co-writer and producer Debra Hill’s hometown of Haddonfield, N.J. The film was shot in Pasadena, Calif. (a palm tree is visible in one scene), but the crew brought in bags of autumn leaves and used a fan to blow them around to get that midwestern fall flavor. Every town, Carpenter thought, had its own haunted house, its own legends, and he threw that up on the big screen and made Haddonfield become the stand-in for each viewer’s hometown. “Death has come to your little town, sheriff,” Donald Pleasance says in one scene. “You can either ignore it, or you can help me to stop it.”

What the killer sees
The movie opens with a long, continuous shot as we’re taken into Michael Myers’ house. Carpenter utilized the recently invented Steadicam to smoothly put viewers inside the 6-year-old killer’s point of view. We even see through the holes cut in his Halloween clown mask as he takes a butcher knife from the kitchen drawer and glides upstairs, to his unsuspecting sister’s room. There are reportedly three cuts in this smoothly flowing shot, but heck if we can spot them. And other horror movies have used the Steadicam a thousand times since, but few use it so well.

The killer who won’t die
The idea that evil will never die, that the boogeyman, the monster, the devil in whatever form, is always out there, is a classic concept that goes beyond movies — it’s biblical. Today’s savvy moviegoers may scoff at the cliche of the victim who drops the knife right next to the killer she thinks she’s killed off, then turns her back to him. But in “Halloween,” it was fresh. Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode leans against a doorframe sobbing, thinking she’s survived, and suddenly, in the background, Michael Myers sits up. It’s not over; it’ll never be over. Happy Halloween.

You may have received a note saying that Halloween didn’t reach its tipping point. Well, that’s our fault. We set the expiration time a day early, and didn’t catch it until this morning.

Halloween is still open through this evening!

It only needs about 40 more tickets to reach its tipping point, so if you want to see the original 1978 John Carpenter horror story of Michael Myers, grab your tickets today!

We’ll have a costume contest, and free beer for folks who bring a carved pumpkin to put on stage! If you’ve been to any of the other screenings this month, you know how fun seeing Halloween is going to be with a good group of movie lovers.

We apologize for any confusion about the tip/no-tip debacle! We hope to see you next week at the Egyptian!

]]>10 Reasons to see Ghostbusters at the Egyptian!http://boiseclassicmovies.com/10-reasons-to-see-ghostbusters-at-the-egyptian/
Mon, 07 Oct 2013 20:43:05 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=45563Ghostbusters is up for screening at the Egyptian on October 15, and it has until this Wednesday to reach the 200-ticket mark. I know what you’re thinking: “Who WOULDN’T want to see this Halloween favorite in October at the historic (and haunted) Egyptian Theatre?!” I know! But believe it or not, there are still several […]]]>

Ghostbusters is up for screening at the Egyptian on October 15, and it has until this Wednesday to reach the 200-ticket mark. I know what you’re thinking: “Who WOULDN’T want to see this Halloween favorite in October at the historic (and haunted) Egyptian Theatre?!” I know! But believe it or not, there are still several thousand people here in the valley who haven’t picked up tickets yet.

I mean, we’re going to have a costume contest with prizes, and we’re going to offer goodies to folks who bring a carved pumpkin to the show (i.e., $1 beer or another goodie if beer’s not your thing) in addition to putting your lit pumpkin on stage during the show! It’s going to be a great fall evening at the movies, but it still hasn’t tipped.

Well, that’s just madness. Let’s put a stop to that right here by offering 10 marvelous reasons to see Ghostbusters next week (thanks to the good folks at tor.com). Once you’re convinced, just pick up a pair of tickets right here on the site and join us next week at the movies:

Citizen Kane? The Godfather? Blade Runner? Keep ‘em. The best film ever made, hands-down, is Ghostbusters.

In 1984 I was seven, and I loved Ghostbusters so much I saw it three times in one week. Twenty-seven years later, I sat in a cinema watching a brand new digital projection, re-released for Halloween, knowing every line, every tick of Bill Murray’s face, every giant dollop of melted marshmallow.

But what makes Ghostbusters so enduring? The film spawned a huge franchise of toys, cartoons, and video games; and lines from the title song — like the instantly recognisable “Who ya gonna call?” — have entered the common lexicon. There’s clearly something different about this film, and here’s my list of ten things that not only make Ghostbusters great, but make it a film well deserving of its ongoing legacy.

1. The setting

“I love this town!” cries Winston Zeddemore, the film’s pitch-perfect closing line. For a movie about a team that specialises in paranormal investigations and eliminations, there is a remarkable lack of creaky haunted houses. Setting the film in New York — one of the most recognisable cities in the world — is a stroke of genius, making it a thoroughly modern ghost story. Any visitor to Manhattan will have looked up at the Art Deco skyscrapers and marveled at their history and architecture, both of which play a vital role in the film.

2. Science fiction versus the supernatural

Like the stereotypical haunted house, the traditional ghost hunting tools of bell, book, and candle are out. The Ghostbusters fight the forces of darkness with unlicensed nuclear accelerators and positron colliders, measuring psycho-kinetic energy with a handheld meter and storing the captured spirits in a high voltage laser containment grid. Even the ghosts themselves have classifications, from the free-roaming, vaporous, full-torso apparition at the New York Public Library to Slimer, a focused, non-terminal repeating phantasm or Class Five Full Roaming Vapor (“A real nasty one, too”). Dana Barrett’s apartment building was constructed as a superconductive psychic antenna, with a design resembling the telemetry equipment NASA uses to locate dead pulsars in deep space. Ghostbusters blends SF and the occult together, spawning something completely new and, quite possibly, inspiring a whole generation of 21st century paranormal investigators equipped with night vision goggles and EMF meters.

3. The monsters

Only the apparition at the library bears any resemblance to a traditional spectre. The others are a mix of horror tropes, such as the zombie cab driver, and unique design, like Slimer and the Terror Dog forms of Zuul and Vinz Clortho.

4. The music

All great films have a memorable soundtrack, and Ghostbusters might have the most famous title track of all. Ray Parker, Jr.’s theme song continues to be heard to this day, while Elmer Bernstein’s orchestral score, heavy with the Theremin-like sounds of the ondes Martenot, is instantly familiar.

5. Bill Murray…

While the legend that Bill Murray ad-libbed his way through the entire film is certainly spurious, examination of the shooting script for Ghostbusters does reveal that the version of the film that made it on screen features a lot of Murray’s improvisation. Murray is a master of subtlety — just watch his face when Ray tells Venkman how much he paid for Ecto-1.

6. …And the rest of the cast

Bill Murray’s superlative performance as Dr Peter Venkman may be one of the keystones of the film, but the rest of the cast are pitch perfect. Co-writer Harold Ramis only took the role of Egon after they failed to find a suitable actor, but his deadpan portrayal is now a classic. Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, and William Atherton form a superb company.

7. Ancient mysteries

There are tantalising hints of a deeper, darker history to events. The film’s primary threat, Gozer the Gozerian, a.k.a. Volguus Zildrohar, is a Sumerian god, worshipped by Ivo Shandor’s cult in the 1920s. And through the Keymaster we get a glimpse of the world’s ancient, Lovecraftian alt-history, learning a little about the rectification of the Vuldronaii and the third reconciliation of the last of the Meketrex supplicants.

8. Playing it straight

Ghostbusters may be billed as a comedy, and may be filled with wit and sparkle and terrific one-liners, but really there’s nothing funny going on. The dead are rising from the grave in ever-increasing numbers prior to an ancient god landing in Manhattan to destroy the world, belatedly heading the call of an insane occultist. Gozer’s final form — the 100-foot Stay Puft marshmallow man — is hilarious, but was simply an image plucked from Ray’s mind and its innocuous form soon proves horrifying.

9. Quotability

Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis’s script is packed to the gills with lines worthy of quotation like no other movie: “Back off man, I’m a scientist”; “Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria”; “Tell him about the Twinkie”; “When someone asks if you if you’re a god, you say yes!”; “There is no Dana, only Zuul”; “Listen! Do you smell something?” Take your pick!

10. The special effects

Ah, the Stay Puft marshmallow man. You didn’t think I was going to leave him out, did you? I’m quite happy to claim that the shot of the famous monster walking through the streets of New York is on the best pieces of special effects photography seen in cinema. Model work has obvious limitations, but full credit here to the visual effects team, who lit and filmed the model sequence perfectly.

]]>Is the Egyptian Theatre haunted?http://boiseclassicmovies.com/is-the-egyptian-theatre-haunted/
Mon, 30 Sep 2013 02:55:10 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=44003In the Shining, the Overlook Hotel is haunted…in a bad, bad way. Some say that the Egyptian Theatre may well share a similar paranormal host (though it has more of a Casper than a Jack Torrence).

Is the Egyptian Haunted? Take a look here and decide for yourself. And if you’re REALLY brave, head to the Egyptian to see The Shining on October 8 with a ghost!

]]>11 Reasons to see Beetlejuicehttp://boiseclassicmovies.com/11-reasons-to-see-beetlejuice/
Tue, 24 Sep 2013 18:28:31 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=43107What’s better than watching a great Tim Burton movie in October? Watching Tim Burton in October with a theater full of other Burton-ites! Boise Classic Movies is bringing Beetlejuice to the Egyptian to celebrate the movie’s 25th anniversary! But it still has to hit the 200-ticket mark if it’s going to show. If you have […]]]>

What’s better than watching a great Tim Burton movie in October? Watching Tim Burton in October with a theater full of other Burton-ites! Boise Classic Movies is bringing Beetlejuice to the Egyptian to celebrate the movie’s 25th anniversary! But it still has to hit the 200-ticket mark if it’s going to show.

If you have your tickets already, then you truly are the ghost with the most! If not, exorcise you calendar on October 1 and get a pair of tix before Friday, September 27. It’s going to be a great time at the theater with beer & wine, and a look-alike contest. Don’t miss it!

Still need convincing? The good folks over at blastr.com have 11 reasons why Beetlejuice is still a great flick after 25 years:

A lot has happened since Beetlejuice first hit theaters back in March of 1988. Tim Burton has directed two Batman films, an Alice in Wonderland film, an animated cult classic in The Nightmare Before Christmas and several other critical and box-office successes (though not always at the same time). Michael Keaton was Batman. Winona Ryder dated Edward Scissorhands (kinda). Catherine O’Hara became a legendary movie mom in Home Alone. Alec Baldwin went from iconic movie actor to iconic TV actor with 30 Rock. Many, many things have changed since this flick first came into our world, but for some die-hard fans Beetlejuice will always be the apex of Tim Burton’s macabre inventiveness, a perfect blend of comedy and terror, a mesh of monsters and whimsy. So, in honor of this classic film as it hits the quarter-century mark, here are 11 of our favorite Beetlejuice moments.

“Day-O”

How many people can say the ghosts in their haunted house made them do a musical number?

Beetlejuice visits a brothel

Hey, even ghosts need to get a little action sometimes.

“Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice”

What do you do if you’re a ghost whose powers are activated by your name, but you can’t say it yourself? You engage in some rather clever clue delivery, of course.

Adam and Barbara do their best to be scary

Well, they couldn’t take out that snobby family on their own in the end, but they gave it a try with some killer ghostly shapeshifting.

The Waiting Room

The mix of horror and humor in Beetlejuice is a key to its classic status, and nowhere is that mix more evident than this sequence.

The Snake

Yeah, Beetlejuice is all about joking around and relaxing with undead prostitues most of the time, but when you turn him loose he can get really ferocious.

Danny Elfman

Imagine watching Beetlejuice without this incredible score. Heck, imagine Tim Burton’s whole career without Danny Elfman by his side. They complete each other.

The Sand Worm

This is amazing, if only because for a moment you felt like you were watching Dune.

Free Demon Possession With Every Exorcism

Every great character needs a great introduction. Beetlejuice got his through a commercial, while wearing a cowboy hat.

The Wedding of the Year

OK, so it didn’t work out for Beetlejuice and Lydia, and thank goodness, but watching them get almost-married was one of the more surreal moments in this already super-surreal flick.

“Jump in the Line”

What better way to end this wild ride than with a little levitating dance?

]]>10 reasons to see Animal Househttp://boiseclassicmovies.com/10-reasons-to-see-animal-house/
Fri, 30 Aug 2013 17:48:57 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=40791Animal House is showing at the Egyptian on September 12. I know you’re going, right? What? You haven’t picked up tickets yet?! Well here are 10 reasons why you should (courtesy of these fine folks). 1. The 3Bs – Booze, Bud & Boobs The 3Bs is a three-step plan to comedic success. Simply put, give […]]]>

Animal House is showing at the Egyptian on September 12. I know you’re going, right? What? You haven’t picked up tickets yet?! Well here are 10 reasons why you should (courtesy of these fine folks).

1. The 3Bs – Booze, Bud & Boobs

The 3Bs is a three-step plan to comedic success. Simply put, give guys what they want. Is it lowbrow? At times, sure. But even then, it causes cats to crack a smile. Why? Because it satisfies some basic human (male) needs – nurishment, comeraderie and reproduction. And Animal House—a timeless cinematic testament to the exuberant excesses of the collegiate experience—is loaded with all 3 of the Three Bs. In fact, it’s even got a fourth…

2. Belushi – The 4th B

Already a star, as one of the original Saturday Night Live “Not Ready for Primetime Players,” John Belushi made the jump to the big screen, and garnered his status as a legend, portraying 7th-year class-skipper/binge-drinker John “Bluto” Blutarsky in Animal House. Every single bit of dialogue spoken by Bluto in the film became an instant classic, with kids and adults today still quoting the character. Belushi’s extraordinary gift as a physical comedian ensured that even when he wasn’t speaking, he was stealing the scene and helping the movie to achieve the title of a true comedy classic.

3. The Deltas & Omegas Really Hated Each Other

Director John Landis brought the actors who played the Deltas up to the set five days early in order to bond. While staying at the Rodeway Inn, they moved an old piano from the lobby into Bruce McGill’s room, which became known as “party central.” Actor James Widdoes remembers, “It was like freshman orientation. There was a lot of getting to know each other and calling each other by our character names.” This tactic encouraged the actors playing the Deltas to separate themselves from the actors playing the Omegas, helping generate authentic animosity between them on camera. (Belushi and his wife, Judy, had a house in the suburbs in order to keep him away from alcohol and drugs.)

Although the cast members were warned against mixing with the college students, one night, some girls invited several of the cast members to a fraternity party. They were greeted with open hostility. As they were leaving, Widdoes threw a cup of beer at a group of drunk football players and a fight “like a scene from the movie” broke out. Tim Matheson, Bruce McGill, Peter Riegert, and Widdoes narrowly escaped, with McGill suffering a black eye and Widdoes getting several teeth knocked out.

4. ‘Food fight!’

Animal House is considered to be the movie that launched the gross-out genre, although it was predated by several films now also included in the genre. It was a great box office success despite its limited production costs and thus started an industry trend, inspiring countless other comedies such as Porky’s, Police Academy, American Pie, and Old School, among others. Keeping track of the comedies that have tried to replicate Animal House is like cataloguing the many ways Charlie Sheen is winning.

Still, Animal House included a subversive bodily humor and political references that got lost in the subsequent innocuous derivatives. On the left-wing and counterculture side, it included references to topical political matters like the Kent State shootings, President Truman’s decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Richard Nixon, the Vietnam war, the civil rights movement and JFK (the homecoming parade that ends the film actually occurs on November 21, 1963, the day before the John F. Kennedy assassination). Legendary precursors of this counterculture subversive humor in film were two non “college movies,” MASH, a 1970 satirical dark comedy, and another Landis project, Kentucky Fried Movie, a 1977 formless comedy consisting of a series of sketches.

5. Racism & Richard Pryor

“Do you mind if we dance with your dates?”

During the shooting on Animal House, black extras were bused in from Portland for the segment at the Dexter Lake Club. More seriously, the segment alarmed studio executives, who perceived it as racist and warned that “black people in America are going to rip the seats out of theaters if you leave that scene in the movie.” In the end, it took the approval of famed comedian and social critic, Richard Pryor, to retain the riotous segment in the film.

6. The Deathmobile

When the Deltas wrecked Flounder’s brother’s 1966 Lincoln Continental, their initial plan was to dump it and file a fraudulent insurance claim. And while this was a sound idea coming from any “pre-law” student, when Dean Wormer gave the boys the boot, they were forced to agree with Bluto…

“Bluto’s right. Psychotic, but absolutely right. We gotta take these bastards. Now, we could do it with conventional weapons, but that could take years and cost millions of lives. No, I think we have to go all out. I think that this situation absolutely requires a really futile and stupid gesture be done on somebody’s part.”

…And in so doing, the Deltas transformed the 1966 Lincoln Continental into “The Deathmobile”—the funniest and most infamous parade float in film history. “Ramming speed!”

7. The Soundtrack & Score

The soundtrack is a magical mix of rock & roll and rhythm & blues, with the original score created by film composer Elmer Bernstein, who had been a Landis family friend since John Landis was a child. Bernstein was easily persuaded to score the film but was not sure what to make of it. Landis asked him to score it as though it were serious. Bernstein said that his work on this film opened yet another door in his diverse career, scoring comedies.

The soundtrack to Animal House is so timeless that when the 20th Anniversary Edition was released, it included a separate CD of just the music. Among the classic songs featured in this classic comedy: “Shout,” “Louie, Louie,” “Twistin’ the Night Away,” “Hey Paula,” “Money (That’s What I Want),” and “Shama Lama Ding Dong.”

8. ‘Toga! Toga!’

“It’s not gonna be an orgy! It’s a toga party.”

If you went to college after 1978, you’ve been to a toga party. Animal House is the reason why. That scene – with the drinking, dancing, debauchery and, of course, the guitar smashing – is an eternal cinematic testament to the exuberant excesses of the collegiate experience, as well as one of the main reasons the movie stands as a comedy classic.

9. National Lampoon

Animal House was the first film produced by National Lampoon, the most popular humor magazine on college campuses in the mid-1970s. The periodical specialized in humor, satirized politics and popular culture. Many of the magazine’s writers were recent college graduates, hence their appeal to students all over the country.

Doug Kenney was a Lampoon writer and the magazine’s first editor-in-chief. He graduated from Harvard University in 1969 and had a college experience closer to the Omegas in the film (he had been president of the university’s elite Spee Club). He began work on what would eventually be Animal House. However, Kenney felt that fellow Lampoon writer Chris Miller was the magazine’s expert on the college experience. Miller submitted a chapter from his then-abandoned memoirs entitled “The Night of the Seven Fires,” about pledging experiences from his fraternity days in Alpha Delta at Dartmouth College. The antics of his fellow fraternities became the inspiration for the Delta Tau Chis of Animal House and many characters in the film (and their nicknames) were based on Miller’s fraternity brothers. Miller’s college nickname was “Pinto” in recognition of dark spots he had on a certain private part of his anatomy.

Filmmaker Ivan Reitman, who had put together The National Lampoon Show in New York City featuring several future Saturday Night Live and SCTV cast members, including John Belushi and Harold Ramis. When most of them moved to that show except for Ramis, Reitman approached him with an idea to make a film together using some skits from the Lampoon Show. And so it came to be that three of the greatest comedy writers ever – Kenney, Miller and Ramis – began brainstorming ideas. Is it any shock then that the final product went on to become a comedy classic? I think not. They saw the film’s 1962 setting as “the last innocent year… of America.” They agreed that Belushi should star in it, and Ramis wrote the part of Bluto specifically for the comedian, having met him at Chicago’s The Second City.

10. “Thank you, sir! May I have another?”

Of the young lead actors in Animal House, only John Belushi was an established star; but several of the other “unknown” actors would go on to have stellar careers in Hollywood. Tom Hulce (“Pinto”) would go on to play Mozart in Academy Award sensation Amadeus. Karen Allen (“Katy”) starred opposite Harrison Ford in two of the four Indiana Jones movies, including the original. Tim Matheson (“Otter”) has been featured in countless films and television shows, and is also a successful director. Bruce McGill (“D-Day”) has worked with every great director from Ridley Scott to Oliver Stone to Ron Howard to Robert Redford to Michael Mann. And then, of course, there’s the then-19-year-old Kevin Bacon (“Chip Diller”) who uttered the above quote in his underwear while getting savagely spanked as part of his very first acting role. Animal House features one of the strongest groups of young actors ever assembled.

]]>5 Reasons to see O Brother, Where Art Thou?http://boiseclassicmovies.com/5-reasons-to-see-o-brother-where-art-thou/
Tue, 20 Aug 2013 20:14:14 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=40217O Brother, Where Art Thou? is playing at the Egyptian Theatre this Thursday, August 22. We’ll have beer and wine as always, and the BCM crowd is always MUCH more fun than watching a movie in your living room by yourself. But perhaps you remain unconvinced. Well, let Steven Shehori’s list of the top 5 […]]]>

O Brother, Where Art Thou? is playing at the Egyptian Theatre this Thursday, August 22. We’ll have beer and wine as always, and the BCM crowd is always MUCH more fun than watching a movie in your living room by yourself. But perhaps you remain unconvinced. Well, let Steven Shehori’s list of the top 5 reasons to see O Brother convince you to relieve your constant sorrow:

It’s Ridiculously Quotable

Nearly every line in O Brother is memorable for being pithy, hilarious, or simply downright memorable. That’s a rare phenomenon for even the best of movies to pull off. Some highlights:
“Damn, we’re in a tight spot!”

“Well ain’t this place a geographical oddity! Two weeks from everywhere!”

“I’ll tell you what I am – I’m the damn paterfamilias!”

“Say, any of you boys smithies? Or, if not smithies per se, were you otherwise trained in the metallurgic arts before straitened circumstances forced you into a life of aimless wanderin’?”

“I don’t want FOP Damn it! I’m a Dapper Dan man!”

“Friend? Some of your foldin’ money is come unstowed.”

“Wouldn’t we look like a bunch of Johnny-come-latelies, bragging on our own midget — doesn’t matter how stumpy.”

“Say, uh, cousin Wash? I suppose it’d be the acme of foolishness to inquire if you had a hair net.”

“The old tactician has got a plan. For the transportation that is — I don’t know how I’m gonna keep my coiffure in order.”

It’s Inspired By Great Literature

Although O Brother is about three chain gang prisoners on the run in 1937 Mississippi, the story is loosely based on one of history’s most important works of fiction: The Odyssey by Homer. Composed around 800 BC, it’s the second oldest surviving work of Western literature. You know, no biggie or anything. The parallels between O Brother and The Odyssey are loose but definitely substantial. Everett McGill (Ulysses) embarks on a quest, promising untold riches to his cohorts. Although his most pressing goal is to prevent his estranged wife Penny (Penelope) from marrying a new suitor. Throughout his journey, he’s thwarted by three beautiful women by the water (Sirens), a one-eyed bible salesman (the Cyclops Polyphemus), and the evil Sheriff Cooley (Poseidon). Meanwhile, helping him along the way are the Blind Seer (Tiresias), and radio station manager Mr. Lund (Homer). Clearly every teacher and book nerd alive wants you to view this.

The Music Is Phenomenal

In some ways, O Brother, Where Art Thou? the film was overshadowed by O Brother, Where Art Thou? the soundtrack. Not surprising, given the latter became responsible for a veritable resurgence of Depression-era bluegrass, folk, country, gospel, and blues. It nabbed several high-profile accolades, including the 2002 Grammy Award for Album of the Year, making it one of the most respected movie soundtracks of all time. Highlights include I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow by Dan Tyminski, Keep On the Sunny Side by The Whites, Big Rock Candy Mountain by Harry McClintock, and Didn’t Leave Nobody but the Baby by Emylou Harris, Alison Krauss, and Gillian Welch.

The Casting Is Spot On

Although George Clooney is a talented actor, it’s often said he tends to plays variations of the same role. The argument is fair – how different is he really in The Descendants, Up in the Air, The Ides of March, and the Ocean’s movies? That said, ol’ George seriously shakes things up in O Brother, Where Art Thou? as the vain, loquacious-yet-dimwitted Everet McGill. His voice, mannerisms, movements, and several other go-to Clooneyisms are nowhere to be found. No surprise he ended up nabbing a Best Actor Golden Globe for his efforts. The supporting cast is just as stellar: John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson as Evert’s crew, John Goodman as the Cyclops, Stephen Root as the radio station owner, and last but not least, Charles Durning as Governor Pappy O’Daniel. Completely flawless.

It’s The Writing And Directing, Stupid

All the above praise for O Brother, Where Art Thou? wouldn’t amount to a hill of beans if it weren’t accompanied by some pitch-perfect writing and filmmaking. Fortunately, that’s where the Coens come into play. The impeccable direction – plus the stunning cinematography of Oscar winner Roger Deakins – is arguably their career best. Their script is tour-de-force, seamlessly blending humour, drama, action, intrigue, and music, with rich, wonderful characters. The end result? A smart comedy about dumb criminals with enough heart to fill five other movies.

If this list doesn’t convince you to head to the Egyptian to see the Coen Brothers’ retelling of Homer’s Odyssey, then you’re just dumber than a bag of hammers! You’re not dumber than a bag of hammers, are you? Didn’t think so. We’ll see you Thursday!

]]>10 Reasons to see The Goonieshttp://boiseclassicmovies.com/10-reasons-to-see-the-goonies/
Wed, 31 Jul 2013 18:13:24 +0000http://boiseclassicmovies.com/?p=37850Haven’t picked up tickets to The Goonies yet? Here’s a pretty solid list from CNN of 10 reasons why you should : “The Goonies” is a movie about outcasts. (Well, with the exception of cheerleader Andy who becomes an honorary member of the crew.) And you know how much we love nerd movies and TV […]]]>

Haven’t picked up tickets to The Gooniesyet? Here’s a pretty solid list from CNN of 10 reasons why you should :

“The Goonies” is a movie about outcasts. (Well, with the exception of cheerleader Andy who becomes an honorary member of the crew.) And you know how much we love nerd movies and TV shows.

One word: Chunk. Played by Jeff Cohen, Chunk was hilarious as the flick’s comic relief. When the Fratellis demand that he tell them everything, he begins one of the best monologues in 80s movie history. “In third grade, I cheated on my history exam. In fourth grade, I stole my uncle Max’s toupee and I glued it on my face when I was Moses in my Hebrew School play. In fifth grade, I knocked my sister Edie down the stairs and blamed it on the dog.” You’ll be happy to know that Jeff is no longer chunky and is now a hot, well-renowned entertainment lawyer in Beverly Hills.

“The Goonies” was the brainchild of Steven Spielberg. It was conceived during what I like to think of as his golden era — nestled in between “E.T.” and “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.”

It’s hard to believe but true — Corey Haim and Corey Feldman first met because of “The Goonies.” “It was in the waiting room — we were auditioning for the same role,” says Corey Feldman, who got the part of Mouth in the flick. Though Corey Haim was frozen out of this one, they’d become one of the iconic duos of the 80s.

“The Goonies” had an awesome soundtrack, with tracks from 80s greats like The Bangles and REO Speedwagon. But the classic track of the movie was Cyndi Lauper’s “Good Enough” — the 12-minute, two-part video starred not only the cast but 80s wrestling favorites like Andre the Giant.

We know Josh Brolin as the hottie from “No Country For Old Men” and the tragic bad guy in “Milk.” But his first role? Brandon “Brand” Walsh — the Goonie who’s able to win the heart of cool girl Andy.

I saw “The Goonies” in the movie theater, and will never forget the scene where the group makes it through the maze of caverns and puzzles and ends in the cave where they first see One-Eyed Willie’s ship. It was breathtaking. Apparently, for the stars of the movie, too. Director Richard Donner didn’t let them see the fully re-created ship because he wanted the authentic emotion of awe on film. And he got it.

“The Goonies” had a good message — mainly that kids could take action and make real change in their community. Sure, they most likely wouldn’t do it by finding a buried treasure from the 17th century, but still.

Oh, and I almost forgot about Data. How do you not love a pre-teen who creates his own inventions like the “Wings of Flight,” the “Pincers of Peril,” and the “Bully Blinder”? I always wanted him and MacGyver to have a showdown.

“The Goonies” was thrilling the first time you saw it. But thanks to TBS playing it, oh, every weekend, we’ve gotten to see it 90,000 times and get all the nuances. While rumors have circulated for years that “Goonies 2” is in the works, it just doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. Luckily, though, Donner is currently working on a Broadway version of the story.

Head down to the Egyptian for a magical night of nostalgia and memory-making!